Is the Universe Truly Grateful?
by Maca56
Summary: *SPOILERS FOR INFINITY WAR* After the events of Infinity War, our heroes (and villain) take time to reflect on what happened, and try to figure out what to do next.


Steve didn't know what to do.

He had just watched almost his entire team turn to dust.

Everyone who remained, Natasha, Bruce, Rhodey, Okoye, Thor, the raccoon,they were all in shock.

He had just snapped his fingers, and they all turned to dust.

His final words haunted him the most.

" _You should've gone for the head."_

Thor had been so close, a foot higher and they would've won.

But of course, he didn't blame Thor, no one could blame Thor. He had lost his brother, his father, his sister and almost all of his people.

If he wanted to rub in his victory over Thanos, he was allowed. The problem was, none of us understood his power.

One snap, and it was over.

Bucky had died right in front of him, his last words being his name.

" _Steve?"_

He had seemed so confused, before turning to dust.

Okoye said T'Challa was gone, turning to dust as he tried to help her up.

Wanda was gone, but he couldn't imagine she was upset about it. She had just lost the man she loved. She had to watch him die twice.

The tree was gone, and that devestated the raccoon.

And Sam.

No one had found him yet, and they all started to assume the worst.

"Maybe he's still alive Steve." Natasha said.

Steve snapped out of his trance, and shook his head.

"I know he's gone Nat, if we haven't found him yet, he's gone."

"Maybe he's just unconscious somewhere Steve. We won't know unless-"

"Nat! He's gone." Steve said and turned to face her.

Natasha noticed that the usual spark in Steve's eyes was replaced by an empty void.

For the first time, she had seen Steve Rogers broken.

"He got Bucky, he got Sam..." Steve repeated the names of all the people he knew he got over and over again.

He fell to his knees, and for the first time in a long time, Steve Rogers let the tears flow.

"DAMMIT!" He cried, slamming one of his shields so hard into the ground it cracked.

"Steve..." Natasha said and sat down beside him.

She pulled him into an embrace, his head resting on her chest and her head on his.

And Steve cried.

He cried for a long time.

Natasha could no longer hold back the tears either.

They both wept.

They wept for those they lost.

They wept for the parents who will never see their children again, for the children who will never see their parents again, and they wept for the universe.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"We have to go, now!" The blue woman screamed at Tony.

He was still on the ground, his hands where Peter Parker once was.

He hadn't moved, both from shock and from the pain in his stomach.

"You can go, I'm going to stay." He whispered.

The blue woman rolled her eyes, before running over to him, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him to her ship.

Tony started beating against her arm.

"NO! I'M NOT LEAVING HIM!" He cried and tried to get away.

"Shut up Stark! Do you honestly think you're the only one who's lost somebody today?!"

But Tony didn't listen.

He kept beating her arm and screaming until the pain in his stomach caused him to pass out.

"Terrans..." Nebula mumbled, and tossed him onto the ship.

She hooked Tony up to a medical machine and assessed the damage.

After determining he'll live, she set a course for Earth, as that's where Thanos has last been.

"I hope he didn't get them all." Nebula said, as the ship sped of off Titan and towards Earth.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

While everyone had been mourning, Bruce took it upon himself to figure out what superhumans remained.

"Come on. Pickuppickuppickup!"

The phone clicked, and the voice of Clint Barton came through.

"Bruce?! What the hell is going on?!" Clint asked.

"Oh thank god you're ok Clint!" Bruce said.

"BRUCE! WHY DID MY CHILDREN JUST TURN TO DUST IN MY ARMS!?!?" Clint screamed through the phone.

Bruce's mouth went dry.

"I was reading them a bedtime story, and next thing I know, they're gone." Clint continued, his voice breaking.

"Clint, I-I'm sorry. We let the whole universe down. We lost." Bruce said.

Clint went silent on the phone.

"Lost to who? Who has the power to make people turn to dust?!?"

Bruce sighed.

"It's, it's a long story Clint."

"Where are you?" He asked.

"I'm in Wakanda, it's a country in-"

"I know where it is. I'll be there soon, and when I get there, I want answers Bruce." He said, and hung up.

Bruce sighed.

They let down Clint's family.

Who else did they let down?

Steve came out of the forest, the tall and proud man looking beaten and broken.

"Is he-"

Bruce nodded.

Steve nodded back, and stuck his hand out.

Bruce gave him the phone, trying to look Steve in the eye, but he never met his gaze.

"I have a few calls to make, I just need to be alone for a bit." Steve said, and walked back into the forest.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Thor was resting up against a tree, thinking about all that had happened.

" _You should've gone for the head."_

Thor jumped up, ripping the tree out of the ground and smashing it to pieces.

His mind wandered to others who may still be alive.

He knew Clint was well, and he assumed Tony had found a way to live through it.

Thor sat down in the grass and sighed.

He heard someone approaching behind him.

"How you holding up Thor?"

He turned his head and saw Natasha Romanoff.

He chuckled, a sad, defeated chuckle, not a happy one.

"Well enough I guess, considering I'm not dust."

Natasha sat down beside him.

"I know that look in your eyes, don't even think about blaming this on yourself Odinson." She said, looking him in the eyes.

Thor broke contact and looked at the ground.

"You know, when Loki and I were children, we still fought. I remember one time when we were 8, he pretended to be a snake, and he knows I love snakes, so I picked it up to admire it and he transformed and stabbed me." Thor said, his eyes darkening.

"To you, that may sound like a bad memory, but to me, it is one of the best memories I have. And now my family is gone, my kingdom is gone, my people are gone. Thanos is going to pay for what he's done, and if I have to die to do it, I will. I had my chance to end him twice, and both times I failed."

Natasha didn't say anything, but she understood how Thor was feeling.

She put her hand on his shoulder, and she sat with him.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hey Hope? You think if I sneak out I'll get in trouble again or what?" Scott Lang called as he came downstairs after waking up from a decent nights rest.

Him, Hope and Hank were all on house arrest, after violating the accords and causing a lot of trouble during the "Ghost" incident.

As he came downstairs, everything seemed eerily quiet.

"Hope?" He asked as he entered the kitchen.

He saw Hope on her knees by the table, looking like she was in shock.

"Hope? Are you ok?" Scott asked as he entered the room.

"He-he's gone. Turned to dust. Stark-Stark was right." Hope muttered.

Her hands were outstretched in front of her, almost like she was holding something.

Someone.

"What happened?" Scott asked, the worry evident in his voice.

Hope started crying.

"Hank, he just, turned to dust, right in my arms." She said.

Scott's eyes widened.

"Oh no..."

Scott ran to his phone and dialed a number he hadn't called in a while.

The phone rang, and rang, and rang.

But no one picked up.

Scott looked at his phone in horror.

And he screamed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 _How much did this cost me?_

I had found myself wondering that ever since I snapped my fingers.

I lost all of my children, I lost my people.

I even feel as though I lost some of my being.

I could undo it.

One more snap and it all gets undone.

But no, this is a necessary sacrifice.

Half the universe goes, so the other half may prosper.

Yes, it is a necessary sacrifice, and I am allowed to enjoy my sunrise, as a grateful universe rests.


End file.
